For as far back as the history of humanity has been recorded, the use of jewelry and decorative objects has been an integral part of life. Gold, silver, platinum and other precious metals have been shaped into rings, broaches, pins, pendants, bracelets, anklets, wrist bands, and the like. To these decorative objects of art have been added diamonds, emeralds, rubies, sapphires and other precious and semi-precious stones. Other decorative jewelry has also been made from many other materials, as each piece of jewelry becomes an expression of art and of beauty as seen by the craftsman and the person selecting or wearing the jewelry.
While many beautiful pieces have been created over the centuries, and while the most exclusive and expensive examples of the jeweler's art are worn, if at all, only on `special` occasions, some jewelry is worn on a regular basis. Wedding and engagement rings may never be removed during the lifetime of the wedded couple. Other `favorite jewelry` such as mother's rings, school rings, identification bracelets and the like are also worn all the time. In either case, whether a piece of jewelry is seldom if ever worn or if it is never not in use, the jewelry can and does get dirty. Ordinary dirt, grease, makeup, oil, food, and all the other contaminants of life contact the jewelry and, in most cases, decrease the visual brilliance of the piece. Gold and diamonds possess eternal beauty, but that beauty is not as evident when the gold or diamond is covered with dirt.
Extremely rare or valuable jewelry is often cleaned only by professional jewelers and gem smiths who use optimum techniques to preserve and restore the essential beauty of the metal and stone. These procedures are expensive, time consuming and virtually inappropriate for the more frequently used jewelry, if only because of the inconvenience and cost which their use entails. Unfortunately, to the present time there has not been offered a satisfactory alternative to the professional cleaning that admittedly does a fine job but which is also impractical. For that reason, if really nice jewelry is worn a few times and becomes dirty, and if it is an occasional piece, such as a pendant worn in more formal occasions, it looses its beauty and in time and no longer gets worn, unless it is taken to a jeweler for cleaning. Too often that option is ignored or forgotten. One may only remember that the piece needs cleaning when one is about to wear it, which is not the time to go the jewelry store to have it cleaned.
If the jewelry is always in use, there is the reluctance to part with it even for cleaning. Unfortunately, as more dirt and grease slowly accumulated on it, the brilliance slowly decreases, so that its former beauty is not even remembered. Only when it is cleaned is the former condition recalled. It would be a great advantage to those who wear jewelry to have some way to clean that jewelry conveniently and quickly, at home or while traveling without involving a lot of difficulty.
There have been several proposed solutions for alternatives to having a jeweler clean jewelry and other valuable items. Silver polish is, of course, an alternative which can be used for some items. However, even that does not permit removal of dirt, tarnish and other contaminants from the crevices and corners of the silverware. Ultrasonic cleaners are also proposed and, in fact, are used by professional jewelers to clean rings and the like. However, vibration from ultrasonic waves does not remove dirt, grease, and the like. It is the action of soap or other cleaning solvents in the ultrasound bath which accomplishes the cleaning. Also, ultrasound devices are not normally considered desirable objects to place in the dressing area of a home, so that they are either stored and sometimes too much trouble to unpack or are in remote areas of the house where the impulse to select certain jewelry is lost before the ultrasound can be found and made operable.
It is a fact of the industry that people who clean jewelry often think of that task only when the jewelry is being selected. This impulse selection often brings frustration rather than the pleasure that the jewelry is intended to bring.
While no one has directly suggested a formulation for cleaning jewelry, some of the components of the present invention have been employed in other art. Gergely U.S. Pat. No. 4,417,993 describes a cleaning tablet for tooth prostheses in which a long lasting effervescence is produced using a multiple chemical component system. Dental fixtures and jeweled gold are not totally related although some of the same materials are employed in their manufacture.
This same inventor has had several patents which relate to the method of making tablets of this type. Gergely U.S. Pat. No. 3,773,922 describes another method of manufacturing effervescent tablets, this time for dispensing medicine. Both systems use sodium bicarbonate and an acid to generate effervescence, although neither patent suggests that difficult to clean jewelry could be cleaned by such a concept, since it is of course true that effervescence alone does not clean jewelry.
The idea of using effervescence generation from sodium bicarbonate and citric acid is not new. Greenblatt, U.S. Pat. No. 2,105,690 teaches that it is old to have an effervescent tablet using potassium bicarbonate and citric acid. Elias U.S. Pat. No. 2,854,377 introduces the use of surface active agents. Keast et al U.S. Pat. No. 3,367,876 discloses sodium tripolyphosphate in large concentrations to increase the rate of dissolution of the general cleaning formulations disclosed therein. Schmitt U.S. Pat. No. 3,639,568 discloses the use of sodium lauryl sulfate in tablets that effervesce. Hill U.S. Pat. No. 3,704,227 discloses various sulfonates and colloidal silica for related compounds. There is no suggestion in any of these patents that jewelry cleaners can be effective using these starting materials.
Barth U.S. Pat. No. 4,180,467 describes a composition for denture cleaning with sustained carbon dioxide effervescence and also requires the use of a solid material such as potassium persulfate. Barth discloses a powder that has extended effervescence which is generated by a two phase system where an acid anhydride is employed to extend the effervescence. Other patents which use effervescence in some manner are Krisp et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,217,234, using tetrafluoroethylene materials; Tarral et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,824,664 disclosing a reaction product of sodium bicarbonate and citric acid where the reaction is stopped at a partial completion by application of vacuum; Duvall U.S. Pat. No. 4,942,039 describing a low sodium antacid with aspirin or the like included; Young U.S. Pat. No. 5,055,305 also using a two component systems to provide effervescence under acidic and alkaline conditions to prolong the reaction; and finally, Gioffre et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,818,518 disclosing an alternative source of carbon dioxide.
There is no teaching in the prior art of the use of a compressed formulation having a delaying action for the effervescence due to the compression, to thereby allow the detergent to work and prevent the user from stopping the cleaning. This is not shown or suggested in the prior art.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method for cleaning and restoring jewelry as broadly defined herein to a clean, visually appealing condition with as little effort on behalf of the owner as possible.
Another object of this invention is to provide a formulation which is usable at home or while traveling, and which does not require significant equipment to implement complete cleaning and restoring jewelry.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a formulation which guides the user to complete the cleaning process before removing the jewelry from the process.
Other objects will appear hereinafter.